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Constitutional Law Keyed to Choper
McConnell v. FEC
Citation:
540 U.S. 93 (2003)Facts
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) was enacted to address two developments that had undermined previous campaign finance regulations: the increased importance of “soft money” and the proliferation of issue advertisements that influenced federal elections without using express advocacy. Prior to BCRA, federal law limited “hard money” contributions made directly to candidates, but parties could raise unlimited “soft money” ostensibly for party-building activities and generic advertising. This created a system where large donations could be made to political parties that would benefit federal candidates indirectly. Additionally, corporations and unions could fund broadcast advertisements that effectively advocated for or against candidates as long as they avoided using explicit words of advocacy. BCRA sought to close these loopholes by prohibiting national parties from raising or spending soft money, restricting state and local parties’ use of soft money for federal election activities, and regulating “electioneering communications” – broadcast ads that mentioned candidates shortly before elections. The plaintiffs challenged these provisions as violating their First Amendment rights to political speech and association.
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